After what seemed like days but was merely the passing of mid-morning to mid-afternoon the morning that Genevieve was found, the physician arrived. Lorenzo went to Vieve and asked her if she minded if the physician examined her. She turned away from him which he decided was a no. He could not help but feel partially gladdened by this. He had no love for physicians as he witnessed too many who took liberties. And others who exacted pain and even killed, in the name of experiment. Some men were truly evil.

He told the physician that she refused.

"Why did you ask her? Stupid girl. They don't know what is good for them," the Physician replied. Lorenzo ignored this remark.

"To make your visit not so pointless for you, could you describe what care we might take with Genevieve? I know it's difficult without you seeing her. She was bound and hung from a tree in the cold for most of the night."

"She must have a severely dry throat," Physician told him. Lorenzo bit hard on his tongue. Any fool could've guessed that. "She would need bed rest and liquid. Water and clear soup only. Is there bruising on her neck?"

"Yes."

"It will fade with time."

"And the cuts on her wrists and legs?"

"The same. This salve should help," he passed him a bottle of vile looking green slime, "I need to examine her... more closely," the physician said, "I assume she didn't hang herself and if so, she may have been raped. Clear the room."

"No," Lorenzo said firmly, "What would rape appear like?"

"Do you question my practice, son?"

"I am keeping her dignity," Lorenzo replied. The Physician narrowed his beady eyes at him.

"I am a physician. Why did I bother to come if you would not use my services?"

"To be paid. Now unless you wish to relinquish your fee, you will describe to these ladies here what rape looks like on a victim."

The Physician looked down his nose at Stella and her companion. "Do you think these two have the equipment or the skill to do my job."

"I believe they do. After all, they are women themselves. Now, will I send you home with or without payment?"

Lorenzo listened as the Physician described the bruising that occurred with rape. It was a topic that clearly made the women uncomfortable, especially to have it spoken to them by an unknown man. Lorenzo encouraged them to look past the social conventions that held them firmly and to consider it as a way of helping Genevieve. Finally, they agreed to examine her.

It was an agonising 15 minutes while the women worked and Lorenzo waited. They opened the door, eyes downcast and shook their head. "There was no bruising so we didn't look any further," Stella told Lorenzo. Understandably, she couldn't meet his eyes. Lorenzo dismissed the Physician soon after.

Upon entering the room again, Lorenzo went straight to Genevieve's side and offered her water. She sipped a bit and seemed okay. If only she could speak with him and tell him who did this, then he could take more confident action and right this wrong.

For now, he had to wait until she was better.

Colour slowly seeped back into her face and Lorenzo built up the fire. The terrors seemed to be the most pressing issue for her. They were frequent but difficult to anticipate. On the third wave of women to sit with Geneveive at midnight, Lorenzo decided that he would sleep himself. He hadn't eaten all day though he was not hungry. He walked through the corridors of his home barely registering where he was going and somehow, an eternity later, found his door. Luigi was waiting with a crackling fire and a drawn bath but Lorenzo dismissed him and climbed into bed exhausted.

He woke early. Luigi had anticipated him and left some bread and olive oil for his own breakfast as well as a fresh bath. He was a good man.

Dressed just after the sun was up, Lorenzo made his way to Genevieve's room. The women were changing shift again – this would be the early morning shift.

"She hasn't slept at all," one of the women said to him.

"Not even a minute," the other reiterated. Lorenzo thanked them and entered. The room was warm and the fire crackled happily. Vieve's face had regained its colour. Her lips were their usual shade of pink and her cheeks were rosy. Her consciousness seemed to have returned as well – she appeared more alert than yesterday. He offered her a drink, which she declined and he sat down in the chair next to her bed.

"Vieve, I cannot imagine what the last few days have been like for you," he told her. She blinked at him from beneath her covers. "I hope you feel better soon so you can tell me who did this to you." She made some coughing noise, attempting to clear her throat and opened her mouth but nothing came out. This troubled her a little and she shut it again, a little embarrassed. "Don't worry for now," he reassured her, "Get better – that's your task."

Directly from her room, Lorenzo went to find the Master. The concerned look that the old man gave him spoke volumes.

"She's awake but unable to speak," Lorenzo told him, sitting down and burying his head in his hands.

"Have you got any information?" the Master clarified.

"No, Master."

"Why haven't you started interviewing the staff or novices yet?" the Master asked angrily. Lorenzo immediately sat up straighter. He hadn't anticipated the Master to be unsympathetic of his own position in this situation.

"If nothing was heard, they'll tell me that. But I'm afraid that if they did hear something they'll tell me the same. Nothing."

"Start asking, Lorenzo," the Master snapped. It wasn't often that the Master was harsh in his tone but this was one of those times. "This occurrence is unacceptable! I'd have a mind to tell you to dismiss every servant in this building and send every novice home but we don't have the resources or the time. This must be corrected!" Lorenzo issued a quick "Yes, Sir" and excused himself to find Luigi. He was going to need help to conduct interviews.

Collaborating with Luigi was easy and the footman knew exactly what to do. Which was good. Lorenzo felt jaded already, weighed down with the daunting task of interviewing every single person who resided or worked within the castle. Training was cancelled for the next few days, the servants were put on a temporary roster so meals operated as close to normal as possible. Lorenzo sat alone in one of the Drawing Rooms, attempting to collect his scattered thoughts, waiting for the long line of interviewees to arrive.